BMI View: The Vietnamese economy is facing headwinds associated with harsh weather as well as adverseconditions in global commodity trade. Nonetheless, we expect the situation to improve gradually over thenext year, mostly on the back of steady foreign direct investment inflows, robust domestic demand, growingtourism and a resilient export sector. This bodes well for Vietnam's retail sector, which continues to attractnew international retailers and develop its infrastructure.

Key Views And Developments

- According to Vietnam's General Statistics Office, total retail sales of consumer goods and services inVietnam reached VND1,724trn (USD77.3bn) during the first half of 2016, increasing by 9.5% year-onyear(y-o-y). Adjusted for inflation, the growth figure stood at 7.5% y-o-y.

- Over the next five years, we forecast that total household spending growth will average 9.2% per annum,with the pace accelerating significantly toward the second half of our review period. Per capita spendingis set to increase from USD1,089 in 2015 to USD1,608 in 2020.